On My Way
by The Square
Summary: I met Tenten in college. Let's just say that I kept on meeting her. NejiTen Rated T
1. Prologue or Song Overview

**Story: On My Way Chapter: Prologue**

**Summary: I met Tenten in college. Let's just say, that I kept on meeting her.**

**(A/N: So, I'm doing _another_ new story. Sorry. I got really inspired by this song to do a NejiTen, it's just so perfect for the couple...This is TOTALLY told in Neji's P.o.V. and might be slightly out of character. _Polar Opposites_ might get updated soon...I'm not sure. Rock Band is quite the distracition. Happy (almost) New Year! ****By the way, each of the song's paragraphs is divided up into two. Basically, every three lines is a new chapter except for the chorus.)**

**Disclaimer: I do not claim to own the characters of Naruto. The song is Antonia by Motion City Soundtrack and belongs to them.**

_She makes a lot of abstract art  
She haggles for the cheapest price  
She never orders take-out food before ten o'clock at night  
She's really into snowmobiles  
She owns a lot of nice flashlights  
She cares for all the stupid cats that never found their way home_

_She shaves her legs with Ginsu Knives  
She quotes a lot of Annie Hall  
She misplaced her virginity back in 1995  
She's what's keeping me alive  
She's the pizza of my eye  
Without her near me, I would not survive_

_It gets cold when she's not around  
I float until I sink and get swallowed up  
It's so cold when she's not around  
I'll wait for her to come home and tell me I'll be fine_

_She's always eating Captain Crunch  
She's sings a lot of Ben Folds Five  
She's scared to death of cobra snakes  
Just like Indiana Jones_

_She tells the dumbest knock-knock jokes  
She drinks a lot of chardonnay  
She hates the way I comb my hair  
But she married me last June  
She was the bride, I was the groom  
I cried a lot and then we spooned  
Without her in my life, I would be doomed_

_It gets cold when she's not around  
I float until I sink and get swallowed up  
It's so cold when she's not around  
I'll wait for her to come home and tell me I'll be fine  
Tell me I'll be fine_

_She loves the smell of Christmas trees  
She sneezes when she sees bright lights  
She fainted on the kitchen floor  
When her father passed away  
Our baby girl is due this May  
And when the little lady grows up, I hope that she will be just like her mother_


	2. Chapter One

**Story: On My Way Chapter: One**

**Summary: I met Tenten in college. Let's just say that I kept on meeting her.**

**(A/N: I have two chapters pre-written. The next is longer. I won't update until I get FIVE reviews.)**

**Disclaimer: I do not claim to own the characters of Naruto. The song is Antonia by Motion City Soundtrack and belongs to them.**

**Claimer: I own the plot.**

**---------------**

_She makes a lot of abstract art  
She haggles for the cheapest price  
She never orders take-out food before ten o'clock at night  
She's really into snowmobiles  
She owns a lot of nice flashlights  
She cares for all the stupid cats that never found their way home_

I met Tenten in college – through a friend of a friend. The friend? Sasuke Uchiha was dating Sakura Haruno who was and is Tenten's best friend. Sasuke and Sakura were engaged then. I remember he and I were watching the football game at their apartment when Sakura and an unusual girl came in. She had brown hair that was neatly tied up into two buns on either side of her head. She was wearing a man's button down and denim overalls splattered with all colors of paint. She and Sakura were maneuvering a large canvas painting.

I got up to help them; my family was and is big on respect. The canvas was entirely white except for a messy purple circle thing and a green arrow pointing out of it. "What is it?" I asked incredulously.

"Abstract art, duh." Was her response, "It's what ever you want it to be."

It was a purple circle and a green arrow that looked like it had been produced by my cousin Hanabi at age four. I didn't get it.

**----------------------**

Suddenly, Tenten started popping up more often. When Sakura dragged Sasuke shopping, he dragged me. Tenten was always there too.

She had this thing about haggling. Once, we went to go buy a new sofa. I'm still not quite sure how I got dragged into it.

Sakura wanted the floral patterned and Sasuke liked the black masculine. Tenten and I were fond of the neutral beige suede. The oppositional couple eventually took our advice – thank GOD. Otherwise, we might have been at SuperSofa for _days_.

Then it came time to pay. We all piled into the floor manager's office which was smaller than my dorm room's bathroom. "Aaah, so you're planning on purchasing the F7 Ez-Suede in beige?" he asked us in a nasally voice while pushing up his glasses. His name tag read George. I decided right then and there that I did not like George.

"That'll be ten-thousand dollars." he breathed in that irritating voice, "We do offer a variety of financing options. . ."

Tenten stepped forward, her Starbucks coffee eyes glittering furiously. Her fists clenched and her hair coming out of its usual style. "Excuse me…" she looked down at the name tag, "George?" she asked sweetly, masking the can of whoop ass ready to be set off.

"Yes what?" he responded, wiping his nose on his sleeve.

"Are you married?" she asked coyly.

"No—"

She cut him off, using a strained patient tone, "Do you have friends who are married?"

"Well it's against com—"he started again.

"Have you ever been shopping with a god damn engaged couple?!" she exploded, "We will not leave here until you sell us this couch for less than seven grand!" She then began to shriek rapidly in what I presumed to be Chinese.

George shrank up behind his wobbly desk. After a few calmer negotiations, the soon-to-be-Mr. and Mrs. Uchiha bought a couch in beige for five thousand dollars. I was impressed to say the least.

Exiting the store, Sasuke grasped my hand, "Thank you."

Sakura was hugging Tenten tightly skipping to the black sedan we had arrived in. "Oh thank you Tennie! You're the best-est." Sakura cooed.

"It's not a big deal; you just have to rough 'em up." The brunette replied, dangerously cracking her knuckles.

The car ride back to campus was full of imitations. Sakura took the prize; she had the funniest George voice.

Tenten was continuing to intrigue me.

**----------------**

Tenten was in my English literature class the semester after the George-Sofa-Land Escapade. I remember we were studying for a midterm or some final in her dorm room on a Thursday night. Her roommate was off with her frat-house boyfriend, presumably sucking face.

Tenten and I didn't mind we had turned on the radio to really awful country music to keep us awake.

"So Joyce uses the literal text to—"

"Neji, I'm hungry."

"Eat something."

"There's nothing to eat."

"Do you want to go out to eat?"

She thought on this a moment and checked her watch, "It's too late." she said holding up the Mickey Mouse wristwatch to my nose.

"How about you order take-out?"

She glanced at the watch again, "But it's only a quarter to ten."

What was she talking about? "Why does that matter?"

"I don't order take-out until after ten."

"Right. Sure. Joyce uses the intersection point to reflect Stephen's. . ."

"Neji I'm _hungry_."

"We just went over this."

"I know…"

"Just order some take-out!" I was beginning to get frustrated.

"I can't order take-out!"

"Why not?" I raised my voice.

She looked at me square in the eye, "You really want to know?" she asked defiantly.

I nodded, this was ridiculous.

"It's a Tenten thing." She answered simply. "My parents always said when I was younger that if we were up until at least ten, we shouldn't have to rely on other people to cook for us – unless it was an emergency. After ten, we could order take-out. I guess the old rules just stuck with me."

"Well, you don't live with your parents anymore."

"I still don't want to call."

I glanced at the silver wrist watch my uncle had given to me for my eighteenth birthday. I tossed her my cell phone, "Check your watch." I sighed, Tenten was nuts.

She squealed and pressed eight on speed dial. We would be dining on pizza and maybe get some studying done.

**---------------------**

**(A/N: No update until I get FIVE reviews. Please? That's really not that many.)**


	3. Chapter Two

**_Story: On My Way Chapter: Two_**

**_Summary: I met Tenten in college. Let's just say, that I kept on meeting her._**

**_(A/N: tee hee! I got six reviews in less than 24 hours! This so ROCKS! Like I promised, here's the next installment. The next chapter won't be as prompt but should probably be up around New Year's Eve -- the 31st. I'm so happy that all you guys liked the story and reviewed! Thank You All!)_**

**_Disclaimer: I do not claim to own the characters of Naruto. The song is Antonia by Motion City Soundtrack and belongs to them. Also, if Snowmobile Monthly acutally exsists -- I don't own that either._**

**_Claimer: I do own the plot._**

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_She's really into snowmobiles  
She owns a lot of nice flashlights  
She cares for all the stupid cats that never found their way home_

_**-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**_

Tenten and I never quite dated in college. We hung out a lot then and Sasuke was positive that she liked me. Hell, I was positive that I liked her. At least, I think I was positive. We graduated together and stayed in contact, why throw away a great friendship?

Tenten got a job working in the city as a receptionist to pay off her student loans. It was only temporary but, Sasuke, Sakura, and I threw a party for her at her flat. Her roommate, Rock Lee, helped us. It was a good time for everyone. We were all fresh out of college, building our futures, having fun, it was a good time.

I remember Sasuke and Sakura had left so it was me and Tenten sitting on her couch watching TV. Her roommate had passed out hours ago. I was flipping through the magazines on her coffee table. I noticed there were almost ten issues of Snowmobile Monthly spread out on the cherry wood. "I'm guessing these are Lee's?" I asked holding up the July issue.

"No," she yawned, "those are mine."

"Sure." I responded disbelievingly. I mean, I had known Tenten for a good 4 years now, how could she have hid her obsession with snowmobiles? It was rather ridiculous.

"My parents make them; I have to watch the competition on the market."

I stared at her; we had never talked about our parents before. I didn't mind not talking about family; mine was dysfunctional to say the least. "What do I have something on my face?" she asked rubbing her cheek.

Crap. Right, I had been staring. "No. There's nothing there."

"I know I'm gorgeous and everything, but Neji would you stop staring at me?" she laughed.

"Hn..." how embarrassing.

**------------------------------------------------**

Once, I was walking home from work. It was December and the weatherman on channel five had mentioned something about a blizzard that morning. I hadn't taken much to his "stay inside unless you have to" warning. I had too much paperwork to do; I had to go to work. When I left at five am that morning for the subway, snow was just beginning to trickle out of the sky. Now, my office then didn't have any windows and I worked through my lunch break so I wasn't able to see any glimpse of the outside world until six' o'clock when I left work.

I pushed open the heavy glass doors and stepped out into a world blanketed in what appeared to be white cotton. There was over a foot of snow on the ground and more was dizzying down from the clouds. I trudged back to my subway stop only to find that all trains had been canceled. Now, this was just my luck. I lived at least two miles from the office complex. There was no chance in flagging down a taxi so I began to trudge home in my suit and tie through a foot of snow.

My head was bent against the stinging wind; I wasn't really paying attention where I was going. I stepped on something really smooth and lost my footing, unable to keep my balance, I fell into a snow bank. "Neji Hyuuga, is that you?" a familiar voice asked my damp form.

"Tenten?" I asked hesitantly.

"Neji! What are you doing out dressed like that?" she asked laughing through layers of clothing.

"I was at the office. Why are you dragging that sled?" I asked after noticing the neon pink sled laden with groceries that she was dragging behind her.

"We were out of supplies and Lee figured that the storm might shut down the city for a while. Using the sled is more sensible than driving; I'd be fishtailing all over the place."

I laughed, it was true. Tenten never had gotten the hang of driving in snow. My teeth were starting to chatter, I wiped my pants off the best I could but they were already quite damp and it must have been at the most ten degrees Fahrenheit.

"How are you getting home?" she asked me, she seemed to be rather concerned. How touching.

"My own two feet." I replied solemnly.

"Don't you live on Rudolph and 42nd? That's practically a mile and a half from here. You'll freeze." she screeched.

"Tennie, I'll be fine."

"Hypothermia is _not_ fine." she huffed, "You're coming home with me." she grabbed my gloved hand with her own mittened one and dragged me along the sidewalk.

"Why don't I take the sled?" I offered. It was the least I could do; she was saving me from having my pants freeze to my legs.

"I thought you would never ask." she chirped and skipped ahead as I began to drag the neon pink sled along the snow covered side walk. She began to spin, attempting to catch snow flakes on her tongue. Typical Tenten, always cheerful, always childish.

We turned the corner on to her street and she unlocked the door to her apartment building. The elevator wasn't working so they made multiple trips up to Tenten's third floor apartment. Tenten pulled out another key and unlocked apartment 3A, taking off her snow covered boots before entering; I followed suit. Her apartment was cold, incredibly cold. She reached for the light switch but there was no response. "Aww the power must be out!" she wailed. "Come help me find flashlights."

I followed her through the apartment, my wet socked feet sticking to her wooden floor. We entered a room that was cleaner than most of the house, I assumed it was her bedroom. She pulled open another door and ruffled through her closet. She tossed me something round and hard. I fumbled for the switch on the side. Aah. Beautiful light. Tenten pulled out a box of emergency supplies and we made our way back to the living room.

Tenten set the big camping lantern down and we set to work trying to light a fire in her fireplace. After a box of matches, the logs finally caught. We basked in the warmth. Tenten hung our coats nearby to dry and then grabbed my hand again.

"Where are we going now?" I asked annoyed, I missed the cozy glow of the fire. I can't say I didn't mind Tenten's cool grasp in my own.

"You need dry clothes." we were in another room; everything illuminated by the dim flashlights seemed to be green. Tenten briefly rifled through a chest of drawers and tossed me a pair of flannel pajama bottoms. Rifling through the drawers, again she tossed me a dull gray t-shirt. "Change in the bathroom I'll try and make some tea."

The shirt was rather snug and the pants were too short but it was much more comfortable compared to the damp slacks I had been wearing only moments before. I peeled the socks off my feet and crept back to sit by the fire. I hung my clothes over the back of a chair too dry them more easily. I settled on the throw rug Tenten had presumably laid down and pulled a green blanket across my lap. I looked at the supplies she had gathered. Her flashlights were quite nice. Chrome handles and optional manual powering, pretty spiffy.

She returned arms full with a box and another blanket. "The water's not working either. So we're going to melt some snow." she said placing the teapot next to the fire.

"Do you need me to help you do anything?" I asked quietly. I felt bad; she was doing so much I could only offer help.

"Here hold this over the fire." she handed me a bag of old fashioned popping corn. I obliged, holding the contraption over the fire while she attached to hot dogs to a metal stick. "Our own little cook out!" she grinned at me.

Simply adorable. We ate our mix matched meal over light laughter and familiar coziness. We snuggled up together and must have fallen asleep because the next thing I remember was the flicker of the overhead lights coming back on.

**----------------------------------------------------------------------**

It wasn't long after the blizzard incident that I was back at Tenten's apartment. It was December thirty-first, New Year's Eve, and time for another tradition. Every year since the middle of college, we had always celebrated New Year's at Tenten's dorm, or more recently, apartment. Not a ton of people, usually only ten or so. The guests usually included Sasuke, Sakura, Lee (more recently), my law firm partner Shikamaru, Ino Yamanaka who was Shikamaru's fiance, my cousin Hinata, Naruto Uzumaki who was a good friend of Sasuke's, and Kiba Inuzuka who I didn't know very well.

The party was...interesting, as usual. Naruto had too much to drink early on and was dancing around singing Abba on top of Tenten's coffee table. Lee soon had also consumed too much liquor and was wooing Sakura much to Sasuke's disdain.

The music was loud, the company was good. I might have indulged myself a little. Okay, yeah. I was drunk. Can you blame me? It was New Year's Eve! I worked as an attorney, not the most "fun" job out there. Probably one of the more stressful occupations you could have.

Unlike Naruto, I'm not a crazy party drunk. When I'm intoxicated, I stick to myself but suddenly find everything hysterical. Which is pretty out of character for me. I drifted off to Tenten's bedroom at one point, around 11:30 if I remember correctly.

There were cats everywhere. They were on Tenten's bed, on her windowsill, in her dresser. It's a little fuzzy from then on but, Tenten told me later that when she came into her room looking for me, I was talking to one of the cats wearing a bra of Tenten's.

The next part I remember quite clearly for being outstandingly drunk. I picked up the cat and kissed it and started laughing. I held it up to Tenten and told her to kiss it. Then I asked her, more like slurred, "Where meow-y kitties come from Panda Bear?"

Yes, I called her Panda Bear. It was something we did in college, secret pet names. It had primarily been a shtick between Sakura and Tenten but somehow, in my drunken state, I had remembered hers.

"Well, they lurk in the alleys so I bring them up here and feed them. I let them outside every day but they always come back." she said quietly.

"Nice of you Pandy." I slurred. I glanced at the clock on her nightstand; there was a minute to midnight.

She looked me square in the eye, "You, Neji Hyuuga, are so wasted." She had _no_ idea.

The glowing dial of the clock read exactly twelve' o'clock. I leaned over to Tenten, our faces inches, centimeters, and then nanometers apart. "Neji," she whispered into my mouth, "I'm not sure if we should."

"Happy New Year." I cut her off.

Then I kissed her. She smelt of alcohol and that plain old Tenten smell which could never be accurately described by my vocabulary. She kissed me back. It was only one kiss. We pulled apart blushing, my already spinning stomach now felt even more upset but I felt a distinct and comforting glow inside my gets and I knew then and there, that what I did was definably right.

Her cheeks were tinged pink but it was hard to tell from the lack of light and blue-ish glow of drifting in through her curtained windows. I moved to get off her quilted comforter and stepped on something unfamiliar. A tabby cat yowled from the sudden pressure of my foot on its tail. It shot off underneath Tenten's bed, spitting. We burst out in drunken laughter at the cat, formally breaking the barely noticeable awkward silence that had formed.

**_-------------------------------------------------------_**

**_(A/N: To all you sneaky people who just read/faved/alerted -- please review?_**


	4. Chapter Three

**_Story: On My Way Chapter: Three_**

**_Summary: I met Tenten in college. Let's just say, that I kept on meeting her._**

**_(A/N: Happy New Year!! I really don't like this chapter much. Actually, that's not true. I like the first third of the chapter [the Ginsu knives bit but the rest of it was awkward to write...especially the misplaced virginity thing...especially cuz it makes Tenten's age off...gah. Oh well. Um, next chapter should be up this weekend, but it might be a little late because I'm trying to finish my application to this creative writing workshop that would take place over the summer...[I do original fiction too -- I just don't post it So enjoy this chapter and I'm so glad that so many of you like the story! Happy reading! Oh, one last thing, this entire chapter takes place in one night. I'm not sure if I specify that in the text. Also, the end of this chapter might be re-written eventually...I'm not really fond of it.)_**

**_Disclaimer: I do not claim to own the characters of Naruto. The song is Antonia by Motion City Soundtrack and belongs to them. Annie Hall doesn't belong to me. I don't claim to own the Ginsu Knife brand. I don't claim to own Rock Band or XBox 360._**

**_Claimer: I do own the plot._**

**------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**

_She shaves her legs with Ginsu Knives  
She quotes a lot of Annie Hall  
She misplaced her virginity back in 1995_

_**------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**_

It was out of new found habit that I found myself driving to Tenten's apartment that Saturday. It had started two weeks ago when she had bought the Xbox 360 and Rock Band. She had 'the Gang' come over. She and Sakura had started calling our little quartet from college that. 'The Gang' pfffsssh – ridiculous.

Tenten loved playing the weird little electronic drum set. Sasuke insisted on playing the guitar, blathering about how he had played as a kid. Like real guitar lessons were going to impact your ability to play a _video game_. I would not be the singer. No way in hell would I be the singer. I played the bass. It was actually the same thing as the guitar, but I looked at a different set of colored dots than Sasuke. Plus my character looked a hell of a lot cooler than Sasuke's. Sakura, of course, sang.

Lee was always out when we came over. I think Tenten said he had some sort of martial arts training to do on Saturdays.

It was good fun playing Rock Band. We would play for two hours, talk, and act like we were still in college. There were a few occasional times when our band nearly broke up. For instance, when Sasuke made us fail, I think it's called a 'Rock Off'. Tenten nearly killed him for losing our Roadies.

I was driving over to her apartment, listening to the news on the radio. Despite the fact that suicide bombers had killed twelve people in Iraq, I was in a good mood. I didn't have to go into the office over the weekend to catch up on an upcoming trial and my secretary had stopped trying to sexually harass me.

It also might have been that I had the opportunity to see someone who I couldn't quite name my feelings for. I mean, I knew I liked Tenten. How much I liked Tenten was the real question. Did I love her? Define love. Did I want to kiss her? Yes. Did I want to dater her? Yes. Did I want to risk our friendship for a relationship that might not last? I wasn't so sure.

I parallel parked my car with some difficulty, fed the meter, and crossed the street to her complex. The main door was open for some reason, so I skipped up the three flights of steps she and I had trudged up more than a month before. My therapist had been encouraging me to participate in as much physical activity as possible. Stairs counted. Oh yes.

I rapped on the door with my knuckles. There was no answer. I knocked again and heard a commotion inside. "I'm coming, I'm coming!" I heard a feminine voice yell from inside.

Tenten pulled open the door, her hair mussed and white foam spread about her legs. There were little bits of skin peeking from beneath the white.

"Neji? What are you doing here?" she asked with a smile.

"It's Saturday at six' o'clock." I answered confused, "What else do you do on Saturday at six?"

"Sakura was supposed to call you. Come on in." she closed the door behind me. "'The Gang' is taking a week off from our world dominating tour." she grinned walking off slowly into the depths of her apartment. Oh, our band had been unanimously named the 'The Gang' by Sakura and Tenten.

I settled in her green over stuffed chair – I liked it, it fit me well. "What came up?" I asked from my perch as she disappeared from sight.

"Sakura and Sasuke are at the hospital." was her muffled reply. I got up swiftly, navigating hallways.

"Is everything okay?" I asked tentatively.

"Yes." she replied, I followed her voice. The bathroom door was half open and I saw Tenten reach for a knife that was resting on the rim of the sink. Was she a cutter? What the hell was she doing?

"What the hell are you doing?" I asked angrily pushing open the door.

She looked up at me, her brown eyes wide in surprise and amusement. "Shaving my legs." She said calmly and took up the knife.

"That's a kitchen knife Tenten." I replied slowly, careful to make sure she understood.

"Yes it is." She replied simply, "A Ginsu knife actually." She began to run the sharp blade gently up her shin. The shiny metal collected the white foam off her legs which she rinsed underneath the running faucet.

"Ever heard of a razor?" I asked bemusedly now. Damn, I thought she was cutting to…what the hell I was thinking then? Hm. Maybe something like, Tenten – danger – must save? Is that love?

"Yes, I have, Neji Hyuuga." She said sarcastically, "Ever heard of being on a budget?"

I nodded, of course I had heard of budgeting.

She began to talk increasingly fast, gesturing wildly with the kitchen knife which flung the shaving cream on its blade all over the bathroom, "Well those stupid pink plastic razors get too dull. Then I get nicks and razor burn and my legs look icky instead of smooth shiny-shiny. I tried lots of different things like shaving cream, no shaving cream, men's razors, and even that no shave, _Nair_ junk. It didn't work well. Then one night I was watching this movie. I think it was _Pride and Prejudice_ on HBO. I was eating chocolate ice cream too because my boss, Mr. Williamson, was being a total asshole and hurt my feelings. Then Lee stepped on the remote when he came home from a meeting with his sensei, Maito Gai. Gai is incredibly crazy; you wouldn't like him, Neji."

She was full blow ranting! I only remember Tenten ranting once before about some guy, Ken I think and his girlfriend Barbie. It was scary then; she had been chopping vegetables with me for a salad and had completely pulverized a tomato. Sasuke was upset…It was vaguely terrifying then and now even more so because once again she had an incredibly sharp knife in her right hand that she was gesturing with instead of slicing inanimate objects.

"So Lee had changed the channel when he had been running laps around the coffee table and this shopping channel came on. He had kicked the remote away so I was watching it 'cuz I didn't feel like moving. Ya know, Neji? So I was watching and this infomercial came on about these _Ginsu_ knives. They never get dull. I could cut clean through concrete with this baby." she said, patting the knife gently. "So I called the one-eight-hundred number and ordered a set and use this little guy to shave my legs and the rest are in the kitchen to cut up concret-I mean food. I'll never have to replace it. I just have to be careful – otherwise I might cut my leg off."

I stared at her and she stared back, for a good minute we just stared before Tenten turned and continued removing the hair from her legs. "Why are Sasuke and Sakura at the hospital?" I asked nonchantly, sliding down the tiled walls of the bathroom to sit on the beige linoleum floor.

"Sakura was supposed to call you." she let out a sigh.

"She didn't."

"Well – la di da, la di da, la la." she said, she paused a moment before continuing, "Neji, I'm just not sure if she wants me to tell you." she said slowly.

"Are you sure she was going to tell me?" I asked curiously, I never liked secrets.

"Yes." She nodded confidently.

"Why don't you tell me? I promise I'll act surprised when Sakura tells me."

"That's a great idea, Neji!" she squealed turning around on the ledge of the bathtub. "Promise you'll act surprised?"

"I promise."

"Okay." she slipped off the bathtub ledge and onto the floor directly across from me. She pushed her bare feet against mine before speaking. "So Sasuke and Sakura have been married for two years, right?"

"Yes." I nodded in confirmation; we both had been at the wedding. I was Sasuke's Best Man and Tenten was the Maid of Honor. Sasuke had been pestering me the whole time to finally ask Tenten out. I obviously hadn't, I mean look at us, sitting on the floor of the bathroom…not very romantic.

"And you know how Sakura's been wanting kids, right?" she continued.

Again, I nodded. Sakura was my friend, but honestly, I wish she would shut up about having little Uchiha's running around everywhere once in a while.

She paused for a moment before taking a breath and announcing, "They're pregnant."

"Both of them?" I asked amusedly, "I always knew Sasuke was too moody. . ."

"You're such a jerk, you know that?" she laughed.

"How many heathens should we expect?" I asked more seriously.

"I don't know yet." She replied, wiggling her toes, "Sakura's only three months along. They are getting an ultrasound today."

There was a silence and Tenten scooched over to sit next to me. "Do you ever feel like you're wasting away?" she asked suddenly looking up at me.

Was this a trick question? "I don't know? Maybe."

More silence. Well, this was certainly an intriguing visit. "Do you want to have a movie night tonight?" I asked nervously, "We could head over to my place and pop in something. I mean you're already cleaned up." I joked, gesturing towards her paint spattered basketball shorts and freshly shaven legs.

She punched me lightly on the shoulder, "Yeah, I would like that." I rose slowly from the floor and offered Tenten my hand.

"Madame, your chariot awaits." I said pulling a British accent.

She curtsied, "You're always so chivalrous, Neji."

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

The ride over to my apartment was nothing out of the ordinary. Tenten fiddled with the sound system and joked about how I liked 'old people music.' Tch. Tchaikovsky is timeless.

"Pick any movie." I suggested, gesturing towards my expansive shelf of DVD's. I walked to the kitchen to make popcorn which was another tradition between myself and Tenten. She picks the movie, I provide the food.

I poked my head back into the den, "Have you found anything?"

"Didn't I give you this for your birthday?" she asked, holding up a plastic covered DVD.

Crap. "I think so?" I rubbed the back of my head sheepishly.

"We're watching this. No questions asked. This is the single greatest movie ever made!"

She passed me the case and moved around me to get the popcorn from the microwave. _Annie Hall_. Well, I certainly hadn't seen this before. I placed the shiny disc into the player, settled down on the couch, and pulled a blanket over my legs.

Tenten settled next to me, our toes touching beneath the blanket. I pressed play and Tenten popped a single kernel of popcorn into her mouth.

It didn't take me long to realize that Tenten knew all of the words – all of them. She mouthed along with the dialogue and laughed at all of her favorite lines. At one point she turned to me and said right along with one of the main characters, "Love is too weak a word for what I feel - I luuurve you, you know, I loave you, I luff you, two F's, yes I have to invent, of course I - I do, don't you think I do?"

It was an interesting movie to say the least. The sex scenes were a bit awkward to watch with Tenten. Tenten was snuggled against my chest and she looked absolutely adorable.

She turned her head to look up at me, "Neji, where's your bathroom?"

"End of the hallway on the right." I said pointing.

"Neji, there's a spider! Kill it!" Tenten shrieked promptly upon entering the bathroom.

Oh please. She was just paraphrasing the movie. I made my way down the hallway, grumbling. "Where's the spider?" she stepped back into the hall and pointed.

I got a magazine from the living room and returned to the bathroom.

"Neji, isn't this a big spider?" she prompted.

"Tenten. . ." I whined. She frowned at me. Aww. Fine, okay, I'll say the line…sheesh, "'Honey, there's a spider in your bathroom the size of a Buick.'"

I whacked the spider with the magazine. Jeez, Tenten isn't even really scared of spiders. Suddenly, I felt something wrap around my waist tightly. I looked down at the arms that encircled my torso, Tenten.

----------------------------------------

"Neji, do you want to play truth or double truth?" Tenten asked me from the corner of the couch she had snuggled up on.

"You mean truth or dare?" I asked confusedly.

"No, I mean truth or double truth! We ask each other questions and have to answer them honestly and if you pick double truth you have to go into detail." she explained quietly.

"All right, I guess we could play." Sure, things could get embarrassing or awkward but there were some things about Tenten I wanted to know.

"I'll start, truth or double truth?" she asked me eagerly.

"Truth." I responded. I was testing the waters, trying to gauge what kind of questions she would ask.

"Are you a virgin?" she asked innocently.

I flushed a bright red and turned my face a way from her. Crap – it was _that_ kind of truth. "Umm," I stuttered like my cousin Hinata used to when we were younger, "no comment."

"Neji that's not fair!" she pouted at me and crossed her arms. "Well, it must mean you are a virgin because any other guy would be like 'Hell naw.'" she said pulling her best man voice.

"Truth or double truth?" I asked wearily, my face still bordering tomato especially after that last comment.

"Double truth – bring it on, Neji." she said bouncing in her seat.

I paused only a moment to think before saying, "Same question, are you a virgin?"

"No, I'm not." she replied firmly. "The rules of double truth mean that I have to say something more about it so…" she trailed off, the knuckle on her forefinger was raised to her lips in concentration. "All right, I've got it." She began resolutely, "I lost my virginity in 1995 and I lost it when I was stone cold drunk. I can't even remember doing it – I just remember waking up naked in bed with some guy. I could only put two and two together to come up with that we probably had had sex."

I looked her in the eye for a moment before turning my gaze away. I didn't like this game. My eyes were heavy and I could feel myself drifting off to slee--

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**_(A/N: aww ickle Neji fell asleep! lawl.)_**

**_REVIEW PLEASE! Especially those of you who just add to alerts/faves. I really would love feedback!_**


	5. Chapter Four

**_Story: On My Way Chapter: Four_**

**_Summary: I met Tenten in college. Let's just say, that I kept on meeting her._**

**_(A/N: Woo...still getting more and more reviews! Thank you so much! This chapter ws awkward to write...and I had to make Neji sort of...well, you'll see. WARNING: this chapter contains explicit language and homosexual put-downs. I am not a homophobe -- I love my gay friends. The next chapter will be delayed by about two weeks because I have finals so, enjoy this chapter._**

**_Disclaimer: I do not claim to own the characters of Naruto. The song is Antonia by Motion City Soundtrack and belongs to them. I don't own Sprite or Diet Coke brands._**

**_Claimer: I do own the plot._**

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_She's what's keeping me alive  
She's the pizza of my eye  
Without her near me, I would not survive_

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I think, maybe, I might, maybe, be in love, maybe, with Tenten – maybe. Okay, so it is probably more than a maybe. Or maybe it's not love and maybe very strong like? I hate my mind…

Just thinking about the way her eyes crinkle when she smiles or how she can skate circles around me the few times we've been ice skating, brightens up my day. Or when she borrows my sweaters, they smell like girl, when I get them back. That girl, that Tenten smell – it's like it can make me forget about high school, about my childhood.

I have to ask her out. I have to. She makes everything all right. It's been too damn long of feeling bad about myself and I thought back to high school.

High school…You might have thought that I was the cool kid, the jock. Wrong. I was the awkward kid with long hair who barely talked. I was at the top of my class, valedictorian. I had no friends. I was the epitome of geek. I was skinny and tall, emotionally and physically awkward.

"_Hyuuga you're such a fag!" Kanto shoved me against a locker__ roughly and I braced myself for the next attack._

"_You're such a fucking queer." Ichiro pulled my hair and through me against the locker again, grinding my cheek against the cool metal._

"_Fight back, Hyuuga, you mother-fuckin' pansy ass." Hiro wheeled me around and punched me in the gut. _

_I tried to keep the anger in. I tried to keep in all my emotions – not to let these imbeciles get the best of me. _

"_Does your mother comb your hair, Hyuuga?" Kanto taunted._

Then, right then, is where I lost control. No one, no one, talked or talks about my mother – my _dead_ mother. I can't remember anything after that, mostly because I was knocked out promptly after trying to fight back. Head and hallway floor aren't exactly and ideal combination. I don't like to think about that.

I'm not like that anymore, I started working out my senior year and I've grown into my height. I'm not awkward; I'm a sturdy man God dammit! It took me long enough, but this is beside the point.

I'm not sure what I would be like now if I hadn't met Sasuke and Sakura back in my freshman year of university and then a year later, Tenten. I've never told them this and I don't plan on telling them, but if I hadn't met them, I might not have survived. Sounds really cliché, right? You have to understand, I was so angry with myself back at The Academy. I didn't have anyone to talk to there. My cousins were off at an all girl's school preserving their innocence, or something.

Right now, I don't think about my old days at the Acad. There's no need, I'm perfectly happy with myself except for my indecisiveness regarding a certain brunette friend of mine. The cherry on top is Kanto, one of the bullies from the Academy, is my personal assistant – life can't get much better.

-----------------------------

It was about a week after the truth-double truth fandango that I hung out with Tenten again. It wasn't awkward like I had expected it to be.

Hinata, my favorite cousin, called me Thursday evening the conversation when something like this:

Me: Hello?

Hinata: Hi. Um, Neji, I was wondering if you would do me a favor.

Me: What kind of favor?

Hinata: Well, there's this guy. . .

Me: (I sighed.)

Hinata: What?

Me: Nothing, what were you saying?

Hinata: There's this guy I really like and Father will not let me out alone with him.

Me: Well, that's no surprise. What's the favor exactly?

Hinata: I was wondering if you wouldn't mind accompanying us, it will be very casual, Neji.

Me: So you want me to third-wheel with you and this mystery guy?

Hinata: Well, not so much mystery per say.

Me: I know him?

Hinata: Yes.

Me: Are you going to make me guess?

Hinata: N-no, his name is Naruto Uzumaki.

Me: You're going out with him and you want me to come?!

Hinata: Yes? I mean, you could bring someone with you. . .

Me: Hinata…

Hinata: Yes?

Me: Do you really expect me to say yes?

Hinata: Please, Neji?

Me: . . .

Hinata: Hello? Neji, are you there?

Me: . . . yes.

Hinata: So will you?

Me: Fine.

Hinata: Oh thank you so much! You're the best. I'll e-mail you the details later today. I have to go tell Father. See you later, Neji.

Me: Goodbye.

I hung up the phone. All right, so now I had a reason to ask Tenten out. Now, how to do it?

True to her word, I received an e-mail from Hinata an hour later. There were many exclamation points!!!!!!!1 and "THANK YOU SO MUCH!!!!!!" 's. The watered down scoop is that Naruto, Hinata, Me, and my "Mystery Date", hopefully Tenten, are going out to pizza. Seems rather childish, right? Yeah, apparently it was Naruto's idea. I don't mind much, we're getting deep dish which is much more tolerable than that commercial garbage you see on the television.

Now, to call Tenten. I found her number in my cell's contact list and I was ready to call. What do I say? What are you supposed to say? 'Hey, Tenten do you wanna go out to pizza?' No, because you'll sound like an idiot. You can never go for the direct approach . . . I'll ask Sasuke.

So I called Sasuke and you know what his great advice was? And I quote, "Hey, Tenten, do you wanna go out for pizza with me and a few other people?" I obviously know nothing about girls – damn.

I have noticed that I have started cursing more in my thoughts. Does this mean I'm getting overly violent and losing my nice guy, sensitive edge? I must stop.

I was called Tenten and I was nervous. I mean, I've called Tenten before, to hang out or schedule something or to talk but, I was asking her out. There _is_ a difference. The phone was ringing and ringing and finally, "Hey!" Tenten chirped happily.

"Hey, Tenten I was wondering if –"I started to say.

"I'm not around right now. Leave a message, 'kay?" she continued.

It was her voice mail. If I hadn't given up mental cursing, you can sure bet I would be cursing. Yes. I put the phone down; it was obvious that we weren't meant to be together if she didn't answer my call. My phone began to ring and vibrate excitedly; it flashed its little lights at me too.

"Hello?" I answered.

"Neji? It's Tenten, did you just call me?"

"Um, yes." I said nervously.

"Sorry I missed your call, my hands were full, what's up?" she asked.

"Well, I was wondering if maybe you would want to go out to dinner with me and a few other people."

"That sounds like fun, what kind of people?" she genuinely sounded happy, Sasuke had said this was a good sign.

"Um, well, my cousin Hinata and Naruto Uzumaki. I think you met both of them on New Year's."

"Oh! I remember them. Naruto is kind of loud, right?"

I nodded although she couldn't see me, "Yes, he is."

"Neji, is this like a double date or something?"

"Maybe. . .I mean, if you don't want to think of it as a date that's completely all right and we could just be friends an—" If I was in the habit of mentally cursing, I would curse my ranting…it makes me seem weak.

Tenten laughed on the other end, "Relax, Neji. I would love to go on a double date."

"Really?"

"Yes."

"Wow, uh great. I'll pick you up at six tomorrow."

"So where are we going?"

"We're getting pizza . . . it wasn't my idea…casual dress, presumably."

"All right, well, I'll see you tomorrow then, Neji."

"Good bye, Tenten."

"Buh-bye." and we hung up.

I didn't think it would be that easy. Oh well, you learn something new every day, right?

The actual picking up of Tenten wasn't that nerve racking. I got her some flowers because I know she loves them and she looked happy enough to receive them. She looked nice in her red sweater and her jeans fit her quite nicely, she had very shapely legs. The car ride was more talkative than usual as I explained why it was necessary to accompany Hinata on her date with Naruto.

We arrived at the pizzeria and spotted Hinata and Naruto sitting in a window booth. They sat facing each other and Tenten quickly slid in next to Hinata, leaving me to sit with the obnoxious blonde. Great.

"So have you ordered yet?" Tenten asked the pair.

"Nope." Naruto replied.

"We were waiting for you." Hinata explained.

"Well, I know that Neji only eats cheese or weird pizza with spinach on it and I like pretty much anything. What do you want, Hinata?" Tenten asked. It was true; the spinach was so good…

"Well, I like cheese or Hawaiian." Hinata said shrugging.

"What's on Hawaiian?" Naruto asked.

"Cheese, pineapple, and ham." Tenten responded deftly.

"That sounds good." Naruto agreed. Sounds gross is more like it.

"Yeah, it does sound good." I added. What the heck am I saying?? Tenten stared at me.

"Since when do you like Hawaiian?" she asked incredulously.

"I'm trying something new." I replied firmly. Bah, why choose now to try something new? I don't know. Maybe I feel bolder because of Tenten…

The waitress came over and we ordered our drinks and a small Hawaiian pizza. She came back a minute later with our drinks, Tenten's Diet Coke, Hinata's Iced Tea, Naruto's Root Beer, and my Sprite. I stirred the fizzy drink with my straw. I don't like the bubbles, they tingle my nose. I like my Sprite flat – it tastes so much better. The waitress winked at me.

After Tenten had thoroughly teased me about the winking waitress, the conversation became more awkward. Tenten only knew Hinata from a few prior events and had only met Naruto at the New Year's party. It didn't really matter, Naruto just babbled on and on about random things. However, I did get a few embarrassing stories to hold over Sasuke.

Cindy Jane, aka the winking waitress, came back later with our pizza. This was of course after Naruto had gotten through his entire life story and told dumb blonde jokes. Which I found entirely amusing because I think Naruto fails to realize that he is, in fact, a "dumb blonde."

Upon taking a bite of his pizza, Naruto proclaimed, and I quote, "Hinata, you are the pizza of my eye." He was being quite serious too. I nearly choked on the pizza, which surprisingly tasted all right. Hinata was tomato sauce red.

"I think the expression is, 'you're the apple of my eye.'" Tenten supplied.

"No, Hinata is the pizza of my eye. She's delicate like the flaky crust, unusual and fresh like the sauce, and beautiful like cheese." Naruto explained exasperatedly. Wow, he compared my cousin's face to cheese and called it beautiful no doubt…He must really like cheese.

Tenten and I shared a look. The rest of the meal was no where near as funny. Naruto and I split the bill, Tenten called us chivalrous – I think it's just polite.

Tenten took my arm and we walked back to my car. Once inside, I turned to her while letting the engine warm up and said, "Tenten, you are the pizza of my eye." She laughed loudly, which was another good sign according to Sasuke. He said it means that the girl feels really comfortable around you…

"Do you think he planned that line all along?" she asked between giggles.

"Of course, do you think Uzumaki could say something so poetic on the spot?" I responded smiling.

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I lay in bed that night thinking about Tenten. It was a common occurrence; she truly puzzled me. Did she like me? Well, obviously otherwise she wouldn't have gone on that date . . . She kissed me on the cheek and I think I may have blushed. It felt like my cheeks were all warm. I definitely could get used to her kisses. . .

I am almost entirely positive that I love her. She's like my alluring best friend. Not a best friend like Sasuke. Goodness knows I don't want to get into Sasuke's pants. Not that I want to get into Tenten's pants…no…not at all…

I think my feelings for Tenten are really what is helping me survive. I mean, I know my family loves me in that stupid family unconditional way but, I want something more than that. I've never had something more than family love. I want that true, heart wrenching, fairy tale love. I think that's what Tenten is to me. The thought of Tenten and the possibility that we share that epic fairy tale love is what's helping me survive my crazy work schedule. Damn, I sound like a chick. Double damn, I did that mental swearing again…twice.

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**_(A/N: See you after my finals! Please review! P.S. I love how in spell check, the recomendation for Sasuke is sauce...it makes me happy.)_**


	6. Chapter Five

**_Story: On My Way Chapter: Five_**

**_Summary: I met Tenten in college. Let's just say, that I kept on meeting her._**

**_(A/N: Hey, I'm baaaaaaaack! Finals were...okay...I think I might have bombed Chemistry...but I still think I'll get a B. I'M SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOORY this chapter is so short. I'm gonna try hard and update tomorrow (cuz I don't have school) but i'm gonna be gone all weekend (heck, yeah! It's gonna be awesome) but I'll be back Monday...so, if there's not an update on the 18th, there will be one on 21st. okay? Thanks for being so patient. Oh, and thanks to everyone who leaves those WONDERFUL reviews! They're really appreciated.)_**

**_(Q/A: So, last chapter, some people had a few questions...I thought I would clear things up here. I'm also paraphrasing the questions...kay? If anyone else has a question, feel free to ask!)_**

**_Question: What exactly is Neji's job? Answer: Neji is an attorney. He's partners in a law firm with Shikamaru._**

**_Question: What exactly is Kanto's purpose in the story? Answer: Honestly, he has none. He was just included last chapter to demonstrate Neji's unfortuante childhood and a rather creepy side of his personality...but I'm fixing that this chapter...READ ON._**

**_Disclaimer: I do not claim to own the characters of Naruto. The song is Antonia by Motion City Soundtrack and belongs to them. I don't own Jeopardy or Microsoft...or Bill Gates. (I'm also just speculating on his personality...don't eat me.)_**

**_Claimer: I do own the plot._**

It gets cold when she's not around  
I float until I sink and get swallowed up  
It's so cold when she's not around  
I'll wait for her to come home and tell me I'll be fine

Ha. Get this! I just checked my e-mail and there was a new message from Sasuke. Apparently, Naruto told him all about our little "double date" and he thought Tenten and I were _married_. Not dating, married as in a white dress and rings, married. I want to see her again.

I feel kind of ill. Not like purple, gross grape flavored cough medicine sick, more of I feel really cold and almost numb. I checked my thermostat and it is seventy degrees Fahrenheit which is my preferred temperature so I think something is wrong with me. I have Tenten-itus, or hypothermia.

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I wasn't being serious then, I hope you know. It's the Tenten-itus. I swear. For being unusually cold, I feel strangely giddy. I read on the internet that to treat hypothermia, you should put the victim in a warm bath to help their blood circulate. I'm going to take a bath.

I took a sick day and left that moron Kanto to do my "paperwork" – like I would trust him to do my paperwork! He failed English 1 twice! Shikamaru thinks that I should fire him and get a _real_ assistant. Yeah, right. Having my old high school bully work under me is entirely satisfying. I wonder if Bill Gates ever felt like this . . . probably. I like to imagine that Bill Gates hired some of his own high school bullies who are all fat and didn't go to college so they're forced to work for Microsoft in shipping for minimum wage to support their gambling addiction.

Like I was saying, Kanto is incredibly incapable. He does handle the copy machine well even though he leaves fingerprints on the scanner…I'll fire him soon. I wouldn't want Tenten to find out. In fact, I'll fire him now. Good thing he's not under contract. We have that Johnson trial coming up – I should look for a new assistant next week.

Well, now that that's taken care of, I'll enjoy my bath.

I guess I fell asleep in the bathtub because I just woke up when I couldn't breathe. So, in order to cure Tenten-itus, I almost drowned…

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Why the heck is it so cold?! I'll turn up the thermostat to seventy-five.

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I'm calling Sakura. She's a doctor; she'll know what to do. Wait, Sakura's pregnant. How pregnant is she? Is she 'I can't walk anymore' pregnant? Or just, 'I'm losing sight of my legs' pregnant? How many kinds of pregnant are there? Forget this, I'm calling Tenten, girls have a general knowledge of medicine, right?

I dialed her cell and didn't hang up when she answered – I'm improving. "Neji?"

"Hello, who is this?"

"Neji, you called me." Wow, I am really on my game today. That was sarcasm – just so you know.

"Right."

"What's up?"

"Oh, you know the ceiling and such." Damn, that was smooth of me. That was also sarcasm…

"Ha. Right, seriously, what's up?" she asked curiously.

"Well, I was wondering if I could ask you something."

"Does it involve dinner and a movie? The answer is yes." she said very quickly.

"Um, not exactly, can we put that on hold for a sec? I think I'm dying." Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes! Tenten likes me tooooooo – damn this disease. Crap, there goes the mental swearing again – sometimes I hate myself.

"Dying?"

"Yes." I nodded into the phone.

"What are your symptoms?" she asked. Ha. I was right – girls do know stuff about medicine even when they're not doctors.

"I feel cold."

"You're kidding." she sounded very disbelieving and mildly annoyed.

"…No." Why would I joke?

"Put on a jacket." Now she sounds tired, is she sick? Or does she not want to talk to me?

"I'm wearing one."

"Neji, being cold does not qualify as 'dying.'"

"Tenten, I've tried everything. I even adjusted my thermostat."

"Seriously?" she sounded surprised. Tenten knows how I am about my seventy degrees.

"Yes." I sighed, "Tenten, there's something wrong with me." That is for sure.

"Jeez…I guess I could leave early and check up on you." she said thoughtfully, Tenten is the best.

"Please?" I asked, almost whined.

"Sure." _Score_.

"When?" I asked again

"Soon." She replied

"Now?" I was pestering her. Sasuke said behavior like this is sometimes called 'flirting'. He knows so much.

"How old are you again?" I could here her smile through the receiver.

"About that movie, how does the zoo on Saturday sound instead?" I retorted. You always win when you answer a question with a question. It throws people off and it also makes you look really cool. Also, people on _Jeopardy _do it all the time.

"Like fun. I'll see you soon, Neji. I'm leaving the office now."

"Thanks. I'll see you soon then." I coughed. Okay, so I didn't really need to cough, it was for dramatic effect.

"Buh-bye." she said and then I hung up. Now I just have to wait until she gets here. I'm starting to feel a little bit warmer, just a little bit. Maybe the only cure for Tenten-itus is a visit from Tenten . . . Or maybe I was right about the hypothermia.

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(A/N: Again, I'm so sorry about the lack of length. Next chapter will be normal length! I'm looking forward to writing it.)

Please review?


	7. Chapter Six

**_Story: On My Way Chapter: Six_**

**_Summary: I met Tenten in college. Let's just say, that I kept on meeting her._**

**_(A/N: I'm so incredibly sorry to have been away for so long! It's been almost 100 days since I've last updated!! A lot of stuff came up like auditions and such. Fun Fact: I've been named clarinet section leader!! I CAN'T promise faster/more frequent updates. I'm sorry. I have a lot of projects going on right now. I'll be able to update more frequently after exams and the end of school. Anyways, sorry for the delay! NOW READ ON!!)_**

**_Disclaimer: I do not claim to own the characters of Naruto. The song is Antonia by Motion City Soundtrack and belongs to them. I don't own Ben Folds Five or any songs/lyrics of theirs. I don't own Captain Crunch. I don't own Hoosier basketball...do Hoosiers even own Hoosier basketball??)_**

**_Claimer: I do own the plot._**

**_--_**

**_What Happened Last Time:_**

_"Buh-bye." she said and then I hung up. Now I just have to wait until she gets here. I'm starting to feel a little bit warmer, just a little bit. Maybe the only cure for Tenten-itus is a visit from Tenten . . . Or maybe I was right about the hypothermia._

**_--_**

She's always eating Captain Crunch  
She's sings a lot of Ben Folds Five  
She's scared to death of cobra snakes  
Just like Indiana Jones

I waited a while for Tenten to come by. She said I had a slight fever and put me to bed. I guess I was completely wrong about the hypothermia and Tenten-itus, I just had a cold. She brought me chicken noodle soup and told me to "try and get some sleep." I could hear her singing out in the living room before I fell asleep. I'm not sure what song, the only lines I caught were:

"_Officer Friendly's little boy's got a mohawk  
And he knows just where we're coming from"_

I actually did some sleep, the sick feeling in my stomach I had earlier had completely dissipated. I don't feel cold anymore either – I should change the thermometer back.

I walked to the kitchen, rubbing the sleep out of my eyes with the back of my hand. I poured myself a glass of water before heading to the living room. Tenten was asleep on the couch. Her hair was starting to come of its usual, twin buns, style. She had been watching some movie. The credits were rolling and the ending music playing. I walked over the thermostat, adjusted the temperature back to seventy degrees and turned off the television set with the remote that sat on the maple coffee table.

I sat down next to her. The new weight to the couch bothered her. Her eyes flickered open slowly.

"How are you feeling?" she asked sleepily through half-closed eye-lids.

"Better."

"Not dying anymore?" she poked my side with her index finger and smiled.

"No, but how are you feeling Sleeping Beauty?" I teased, ruffling her bangs, causing a few more strands of hair to fall loose of her bobby pinned hair style.

She swatted my hand away and smoothed her hair futilely, "I'm fine, thanks. It's just been a stressful week." Maybe that's why she sounded aggravated on the phone.

"Do you still want to go to the zoo this weekend?" I asked, remembering my earlier conversation with her.

"Yes." she nodded.

"Would it be, like, um, a date?" Crap, my nerves were showing.

She looked up at me with those big eyes of hers, "Well, it could be, if you wanted." she said quietly.

"I would like that." I murmured. This was too good to be true. I must be having a chicken-soup related dream. I pinched myself and holy crap – I'm awake.

"I would too." she grinned at me, "It's about time you asked me out."

I looked at her, stunned. Tenten said what? "Sakura thought you never would ask me on a date, Sasuke bet her twenty bucks that you would." That bastard! That's the only reason why he was giving me advice! To win a bet with his wife…At least he has a wife to bet with.

"Seven at pick up tomorrow you." I jumbled, still too surprised to use proper grammar.

"What?" she laughed, rocking backwards in her seat.

"I'll pick you up at seven tomorrow." I corrected myself.

"In the morning?"

"Yes?" We wouldn't be able to see much of the zoo if we left at seven 'o'clock at night.

"That's so early." she whined, poking me in the shoulder.

"No, not really." It really wasn't, I normally wake up at five-thirty every morning. My internal clock is very precise.

"But it's the weekend!" she whined again, drawing out the word weekend.

"Sleep in on Sunday." I supplied.

She didn't respond, only grumbled.

"Fine, if you agree to let me pick you up at seven, you get total control over the stereo all the way to the zoo."

"And back." she added.

"Fine." This was going to be interesting…Tenten's musical taste was a bit eclectic.

"Well, I should get going. You seem much better." She rose from the couch and straightened her sweater.

I walked her to the front door, "I'll see you tomorrow."

"I'm looking forward to it." She smiled, "Good bye, Neji." and she put her hands on my shoulders to push herself up to kiss me on my cheek.

"Bye, Tennie." I answered, blushing as she walked down the hall.

She turned back around to face me, a grin wide on her face, "You haven't called me that in a while." I shrugged as her smile grew broader. "Sweet! Sakura owes me thirty bucks!" she skipped down the hall and turned the corner to the elevator. I stood in the door way, did my friends really bet about me behind my back?

_**--**_

I woke up earlier than normal. I was rather anxious about the whole date situation. My morning routine ran smoothly. The weather channel was forecasting a high of thirty-five degrees Fahrenheit so I made sure I had my hat and gloves before I left to pick up Tenten.

Tenten's room mate, Lee, opened the door for me. I checked my watch; it was five minutes to seven. I was a little early. Lee lead me into the kitchen, Tenten was sitting at the table a cup of coffee in hand and the newspaper open. She seemed unabashed by the fact that we were supposed to be on a date in the next five minutes. Meanwhile, my stomach was doing somersaults.

"Tenten, you ready to go?" I asked.

Her head whipped around to face me, "What are you doing here?" she asked apparently startled.

"We have a date." I said slowly. Did she forget about it?

"You're early! Why are you early!" she pointed to the clock.

"Only by five minutes." I mumbled.

"I haven't eaten yet." she said more calmly.

"We could get something on the way there." I suggested.

"No, that's okay. I'll just make something quick." She shuffled around the kitchen and opened up a large cabinet. It was stocked with boxes of Captain Crunch. She pulled out an open box and poured some into a zip-lock baggy. She poured more into a small bowl and ran to the refrigerator to grab milk. "Do you want some?" she asked pouring the white liquid over the cereal.

"No thanks." I had already eaten breakfast.

"Coffee?" she asked after a bite.

"Sure."

She rose from her chair, the metal spoon hanging from her mouth. I gently pushed her back down, "I'll get it, which cabinet?"

"The third on the right." she replied cheerily. I took a navy mug from the shelf and poured myself a cup from the coffee pot that sat on her counter. I drink my coffee black. I only add cream sometimes when I'm feeling indulgent. The soft brown created from the mix of cream and coffee reminds me of Tenten. I added a little bit of milk – just enough to get the soft chocolate color of Tenten's eyes.

She finished soon enough and ran around getting her purse and coat. I reminded her to bring mittens and a hat. She turned to me incredulously and said, "Who are you? My mom?" She did bring her mittens and actually, she brought a scarf too.

We left her apartment after saying good bye to Lee. I could swear I heard him say to Tenten, "Good luck with your youthful love." What the heck is youthful love? And how does he know about our relationship? Does Tenten talk about me to him?

Tenten came prepared to torture me. She had this adapter for my car that fit into the cassette player that she could plug into her iPod. She put on a band called Ben Folds Five. I had heard of Ben Folds and his song "Landed", but I never had heard of Ben Folds Five. They were pretty good – for _pop_ musicians. They had a few songs that sounded rather buoyant, but others were mellower and sad like one that I think was called "Brick." Tenten said it was about an abortion or something.

Tenten tapped out the rhythms on her thigh and sang along in between mouthfuls of Captain Crunch. They should call it "Captain Cavity" at least that's what my uncle always said. He would never let us buy sugar cereal. I grew up on Wheat Bran, or something of the sort.

A song called "Army" ended and the next track on Tenten's "My Favorites Playlist" came on. About half-way through the song, I recognized the lyrics she had been singing the other day. Tenten insisted it was her absolute favorite song. It was called "Underground." After it was over, she played it again. We listened to it a total of three times. I didn't complain.

**_--_**

We wandered around the zoo. We saw a lot of exhibits before Tenten joked that her fingers were gonna fall off; which was impossible because I was holding her hand the whole entire time. Her other hand was stuffed in her coat pocket. That's how we ended up in the Reptile House.

We meandered lazily along, enjoying the heat. We examined lizards through thick plexi-glass and made small talk. She wanted to see the panda bears next. She claimed they were her favorite animals. We were crossing a bridge over the alligator exhibit when she asked me what my favorite animal was.

"Neji, I know a lot about you. What's your favorite animal?"

I paused and pretended to think, "Um, I don't know." I lied. She poked my arm through my thick winter coat.

"You must have a favorite animal, Neji. Everyone does." she insisted.

"I like otters…and birds." I mumbled, reading an informative sign about the mating habits of the alligator.

"I didn't catch that." she prodded.

"I like otters and birds." I articulated clearly and almost sarcastically.

"What kind of birds?" she asked looking around the swamp-themed enclosure.

"Oh I don't know." I said, as she tugged me into the second room. "I like cranes."

"Neji!" she shrieked suddenly, grabbing a hold of my arm more tightly.

"Yes?" I looked down at her bemusedly secretly jumping for joy. This was the perfect time to prove my manliness.

"There are snakes!" she whispered hastily.

"Yes, this is the Reptile House. Snakes are reptiles."

"They're creepy." she shivered behind me.

"No they aren't."

"Yes they are!" she insisted, holding tightly to my coat.

"Let's go look at them." I pulled her towards the glass case. I could read the sign nearby; apparently it was a cobra snake.

"Neji James Hyuuga!" she shrieked.

"My middle name isn't James. I don't even have a middle name."

"That's not the point!" she yelped.

I stared at her, "You're seriously afraid of the little snakes aren't you?" She nodded and ducked behind me, putting more distance between herself and the glass cases. "Let's leave then." I said grabbing her hand firmly dragging her away from the snakes.

She heaved a sigh of relief, her breath condensing in a cloud-like manner. I took out the zoo map from my pocket and searched for the panda bear exhibit. I assumed she would want to see her favorite bears after having her "near death experience" as she would later call it. I pulled her arm away from the Reptile House.

"Where are we going?"

"To see the panda bears."

"Yay!" she clapped her mittened hands together. I swear if it was anyone else besides Tenten, I would have rolled my eyes. I once again took her hand in mine as we walked slowly towards the east side of the zoo. "Hey Neji?"

"Yes?" I looked down at her.

There was a mischievous glint in her eye, "Don't you wanna give me a piggy back ride?"

I didn't answer her.

"My feet hurt and you're so strong. Please?" Her brown eyes looked wider than usual. Damn her womanly charms. I still didn't answer.

"Neji! Please, I'm traumatized!" she pulled gently on my coat sleeve.

"Fine." I finally responded. We paused for a moment while she clambered onto my back and wrapped her arms tightly around my neck. She wasn't as heavy as I had expected. She was actually rather light.

"I was thinking," she said while playing with my hair, "and doesn't Sasuke sort of remind you of a snake sometimes?" She was starting to get a bit heavier; I lifted her up a bit higher to readjust my grip.

"Sort of." It was true. I never really had thought of it before, but his eye shape and pale-skin were rather snake-like sometimes. "Does that mean you're afraid of him?" I asked.

I felt her posture stiffen on my back, "I don't think so. I mean, he's Sasuke. I've known him forever, ya know? I can make fun of him." She responded slowly, carefully.

"You can't make fun of snakes?" I asked

"No." she answered.

"Why not?" You can make fun of anything, really. I've made fun of AIDS before and Sasuke's poofy pants that one time…

"Because they'll eat me." She said simply.

"Really?" I questioned her bemusedly.

"Really." She responded definitively. "Now hurry up, Neji! I want to see the panda bears! I thought you were strong." She teased.

"I am strong." I argued.

"Are not." She insisted.

"Are too." I raised my voice.

"Are not." She laughed. That was the final straw, even if she just was kidding.

"I'm sorry miss but you're too short to ride this ride." I dumped her into a snow bank. She shrieked and lay there in the snow for awhile, unable to quite process what had just happened. I walked away, hands snug deep in my pockets. Something hard hit my back. I turned around to see Tenten looking at me sheepishly. I wiped my back where I had been struck. White snowflakes stuck to my glove. Snowball. Sheesh. I continued to walk.

"Neji!" she spluttered suddenly. Snow clung to her coat and jeans and she raced to catch up with me. "I am not short!" she yelled.

"Am I strong?" I asked her coolly.

"Yes." she nodded.

"Do you want to get back on?" I asked.

She nodded twice and flashed me a smile.

"All right." I grinned and lifted her onto my back again. We were close to the panda exhibit.

She watched the panda bears and read the informational sign multiple times. I stood staring off into space. Something was bugging me. It was related to the whole Reptile House and cobra snakes but I couldn't quite put my finger on it. I could only think of jungles, soda pop, and Hoosier basketball. Random thoughts I know, but they were nagging me. I was brought back from these thoughts when Tenten suddenly pounced onto my back. I could hear a plastic bag rustling by my right ear.

"What did you buy?" I asked adjusting her weight on my back. She waved a stuffed panda in front of my nose. "I would have gotten it for you." I mutter.

"Where to next, Capitan?" she asks in a faux militaristic tone.

"Where do you want to go?" I asked, still trying to clarify my thoughts.

"Where ever adventure takes us!" she cried dramatically, thrusting one hand into the air and the other placed defiantly on her hip. She looked like one of those American explorers. My brain clicked into place.

"You remind me of Indiana Jones." I blurted out suddenly.

She almost swaggered up to me. "You really know how to woo a girl dontcha?" I didn't know exactly how to respond to that. She was standing very close to me, like she was about to give me a hug or something. "I would be a vision in khaki you know." she said softly.

"You would." I agreed and then, something strange and wonderful happened. I blinked once and suddenly something warm and soft was pressed against my lips. It felt like the skin of the plum, but it was Tenten's mouth. Before my brain could even make the connection that she had kissed me, it was over. But it had finally happened and I wasn't in a drunken stupor.

"Um, so what else do you want to do?" she asked me coyly.


End file.
